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Volusia's Beach Patrol focus of debate

A Volusia County Beach Patrol officer leaves the main lifeguard station in Daytona Beach recently.

News-Journal/JIM TILLER

ANDREW GANTSTAFF WRITER

Published: Wednesday, December 26, 2012 at 5:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Wednesday, December 26, 2012 at 10:34 p.m.

The Volusia County Beach Patrol has been the law on the county's beaches for 16 years, but the newly elected county chair wants to see sheriff's deputies patrolling the sands instead — an idea the sheriff has supported for a long time, too.

Facts

Beach Patrol timeline

Mid-1920s: The city of Daytona Beach starts using high school students as lifeguards on the beach.

1931: The Red Cross establishes and oversees the Daytona Beach Lifesaving Corps. 1950: Ormond Beach and New Smyrna Beach start their own city lifeguard corps. Outside the three cities, Volusia County oversees what's left.

1986-88: Volusia voters decide to create one unified beach agency, and the county establishes it.

1996: The federal government, attempting to balance Volusia's beach-driving tradition with its sea turtles and shore birds, allows driving to continue on certain areas of the beach.

Also in 1996: The Volusia County Council approves cross-training career lifeguards to become law enforcement officers and EMTs.

2011: In response to a series of beach driving accidents, by visitors and Beach Patrol officers alike, Volusia enacts tighter safety rules for drivers across all the beaches. The county also signals less of an emphasis on law enforcement and more on Disney-esque park service.

2012: County lifeguards rescue an estimated 3,000 people each year on a budget of a little more than $7 million.

2030: Volusia's federal permit allowing beach driving will expire.

SOURCE: News-Journal research

The Beach Patrol of recent years could soon face big changes if County Chair-elect Jason Davis gets his way — or if other council members who want a "demilitarized" beach get theirs.

"If these guys are certified law enforcement officers, take them off the beach, put them in a patrol car," Davis said recently of his plans for the Beach Patrol. "We're already paying their salaries, so guess what? They should fit very nicely in a nice little patrol car."

For about 25 years, Volusia's beaches have been unified under one large agency. The county, after a voter-approved charter amendment, took control of the entire beach in the 1980s, relieving Ormond Beach, Daytona Beach, Daytona Beach Shores, Ponce Inlet and New Smyrna Beach of managing the stretches within each city's borders.

In 1996, the County Council approved cross-training its full-time lifeguards as law enforcement officers, and the Beach Patrol became a rare hybrid lifesaving-policing force. While the tower guards are often seasonal employees with no police training, the officers patrol the beach and make ocean rescues, too.

Throughout this complex arrangement, the county has been through lawsuits to protect nesting sea turtles, beach driving accidents involving officers and the public, and a Beach Patrol underage sex investigation. Still, it managed the beach with little or no pushback from cities like New Smyrna Beach, which strongly opposed the unified beach plan in the beginning.

It also became a more heavily police-focused force than cities like Daytona Beach originally wanted. At one point, Beach Patrol officers had radar guns to catch speeders.

Today, managing the beach costs about $13 million. About $5.4 million is for the Beach Patrol, with $1.6 million for "beach safety specialists" and seasonal lifeguards. And the county says it's trying to tone down the law enforcement and make the beach a friendlier place.

During this year's campaign for County Chair, Davis signaled he'd pursue a change. Initially, he described a plan to go back to the cities first; then, of those that turned it down, hand over the rest to the Sheriff's Office.

One of the challenges of that plan is the logistics of dividing a beach and dealing with potentially different rules in each section. In 1986, for example, just before the county took over, three cities charged tolls, two didn't. Parking rules varied. New Smyrna Beach allowed alcohol, while the others banned it.

Under the terms that created the countywide beach, any of the cities can take back their portion, anyway — if they notify the county by May 1 each year. None have attempted that.

The Beach Patrol-deputy discussion, though, goes beyond just what type of officer is on the beach. Some have been questioning how many officers are really needed there in the first place.

"When the county took over the beach, what we were promised was park rangers," said incoming County Councilman Doug Daniels, whose district includes the county's northernmost beaches. "We were promised a demilitarized beach. Why it needed to be militarized with law enforcement, I don't know. Maybe we have a lot of criminals out there in swimsuits. Maybe that's the type of tourist we're attracting, but if it is, we need to rethink what we're doing.

"It's kind of hard to pack a gun in a Speedo," Daniels added.

Councilman Josh Wagner, who grew up along the beach and whose district includes Daytona's beachside, agreed the council needs to talk about how to balance beach policing and lifeguarding going forward.

"It isn't simply a question of changing officers for officers," Wagner said of the deputies-or-Beach Patrol debate. "The question is do you want to change the service level and the way we handle the beach?

"Do you want less officers and more lifeguards?" he asked. "Because that is cheaper. And in my opinion, I do think we need to soften up the beaches a little bit. I've said it many times, I think we've sterilized it."

Sheriff Ben Johnson has often said he believes his should be the only law enforcement agency in the county, and shifting the beach to the Sheriff's Office would give the county more flexibility. During times when the beach doesn't need many officers — during storms or other slow periods, for example — a sheriff's deputy could be redeployed to another part of the county to patrol or serve warrants.

The Beach Patrol is just one of seven divisions of the county's Public Protection Department, while the Sheriff's Office is a separate county agency with three divisions of its own.

The sheriff's administration says it hasn't run any official estimates of what a takeover would cost or how much manpower it would require. But in 2006, when the idea was already floating around, Johnson estimated the switch could save taxpayers about $870,000.

"This obviously is a political decision that rests with the County Council, which must weigh many factors when deciding what's best for the citizens," sheriff's spokesman Gary Davidson said in an email. "However, if asked to assume law enforcement duties on the county's beaches, Sheriff Johnson certainly would be willing to accept that responsibility."

County Manager Jim Dinneen, while he said he trusts and respects Johnson highly, flatly disagreed with him on any potential savings.

"There's no savings at all," Dinneen said. "Zero. It actually would cost more money."

The county has already been making practical and philosophical changes to the Beach Patrol. It's been phasing out Ford F-150s in favor of smaller pickups and utility vehicles and placed more emphasis on the "park ranger" service Daniels mentioned. Officers made 654 arrests in 2011 compared to 543 mid-way through December 2012.

It also has an interim director, Volusia's former corrections director Marilyn Chandler Ford, who replaced the longtime director Kevin Sweat.

Outgoing District 3 Councilwoman Joie Alexander, who's been on the council 10 years, said she'd entrust the beach to a sheriff like Johnson — but noted he won't always be sheriff. With the council determining what Dinneen does with the Beach Patrol, the power is divided among seven elected officials.

"If we could be guaranteed that the sheriff would always be like a Ben Johnson, then yeah," Alexander said. "But if it is not — and you never know, because it's an elected official — then it could be not as manageable."

The issue isn't among the first Davis plans to press as County Chair, but it's expected to become one of the mini-budget workshops the county manager holds throughout the next year.

Davis said he remembers the old beach as a simpler place.

"We'd maybe have somebody speed down the beach a little bit, but for the most part we didn't have the problem of people getting run over by cops," he said. "We didn't have inappropriate actions by cops. When you have situations like that, what happens is, it brings a bad vision on local law enforcement. Everybody is heaped into one big pile.

"Believe me, I know that there are going to be certain individuals throughout the county, throughout the government, that aren't going to agree with what I want to do," he added. "But my job is to build consensus to do what I've got to do."

<p>The Volusia County Beach Patrol has been the law on the county's beaches for 16 years, but the newly elected county chair wants to see sheriff's deputies patrolling the sands instead &mdash; an idea the sheriff has supported for a long time, too. </p><p>The Beach Patrol of recent years could soon face big changes if County Chair-elect Jason Davis gets his way &mdash; or if other council members who want a "demilitarized" beach get theirs.</p><p>"If these guys are certified law enforcement officers, take them off the beach, put them in a patrol car," Davis said recently of his plans for the Beach Patrol. "We're already paying their salaries, so guess what? They should fit very nicely in a nice little patrol car." </p><p>For about 25 years, Volusia's beaches have been unified under one large agency. The county, after a voter-approved charter amendment, took control of the entire beach in the 1980s, relieving Ormond Beach, Daytona Beach, Daytona Beach Shores, Ponce Inlet and New Smyrna Beach of managing the stretches within each city's borders. </p><p>In 1996, the County Council approved cross-training its full-time lifeguards as law enforcement officers, and the Beach Patrol became a rare hybrid lifesaving-policing force. While the tower guards are often seasonal employees with no police training, the officers patrol the beach and make ocean rescues, too. </p><p>Throughout this complex arrangement, the county has been through lawsuits to protect nesting sea turtles, beach driving accidents involving officers and the public, and a Beach Patrol underage sex investigation. Still, it managed the beach with little or no pushback from cities like New Smyrna Beach, which strongly opposed the unified beach plan in the beginning. </p><p>It also became a more heavily police-focused force than cities like Daytona Beach originally wanted. At one point, Beach Patrol officers had radar guns to catch speeders.</p><p>Today, managing the beach costs about $13 million. About $5.4 million is for the Beach Patrol, with $1.6 million for "beach safety specialists" and seasonal lifeguards. And the county says it's trying to tone down the law enforcement and make the beach a friendlier place. </p><p>During this year's campaign for County Chair, Davis signaled he'd pursue a change. Initially, he described a plan to go back to the cities first; then, of those that turned it down, hand over the rest to the Sheriff's Office. </p><p>One of the challenges of that plan is the logistics of dividing a beach and dealing with potentially different rules in each section. In 1986, for example, just before the county took over, three cities charged tolls, two didn't. Parking rules varied. New Smyrna Beach allowed alcohol, while the others banned it. </p><p>Under the terms that created the countywide beach, any of the cities can take back their portion, anyway &mdash; if they notify the county by May 1 each year. None have attempted that. </p><p>The Beach Patrol-deputy discussion, though, goes beyond just what type of officer is on the beach. Some have been questioning how many officers are really needed there in the first place. </p><p>"When the county took over the beach, what we were promised was park rangers," said incoming County Councilman Doug Daniels, whose district includes the county's northernmost beaches. "We were promised a demilitarized beach. Why it needed to be militarized with law enforcement, I don't know. Maybe we have a lot of criminals out there in swimsuits. Maybe that's the type of tourist we're attracting, but if it is, we need to rethink what we're doing. </p><p>"It's kind of hard to pack a gun in a Speedo," Daniels added. </p><p>Councilman Josh Wagner, who grew up along the beach and whose district includes Daytona's beachside, agreed the council needs to talk about how to balance beach policing and lifeguarding going forward. </p><p>"It isn't simply a question of changing officers for officers," Wagner said of the deputies-or-Beach Patrol debate. "The question is do you want to change the service level and the way we handle the beach? </p><p>"Do you want less officers and more lifeguards?" he asked. "Because that is cheaper. And in my opinion, I do think we need to soften up the beaches a little bit. I've said it many times, I think we've sterilized it." </p><p>Sheriff Ben Johnson has often said he believes his should be the only law enforcement agency in the county, and shifting the beach to the Sheriff's Office would give the county more flexibility. During times when the beach doesn't need many officers &mdash; during storms or other slow periods, for example &mdash; a sheriff's deputy could be redeployed to another part of the county to patrol or serve warrants. </p><p>The Beach Patrol is just one of seven divisions of the county's Public Protection Department, while the Sheriff's Office is a separate county agency with three divisions of its own. </p><p>The sheriff's administration says it hasn't run any official estimates of what a takeover would cost or how much manpower it would require. But in 2006, when the idea was already floating around, Johnson estimated the switch could save taxpayers about $870,000. </p><p>"This obviously is a political decision that rests with the County Council, which must weigh many factors when deciding what's best for the citizens," sheriff's spokesman Gary Davidson said in an email. "However, if asked to assume law enforcement duties on the county's beaches, Sheriff Johnson certainly would be willing to accept that responsibility." </p><p>County Manager Jim Dinneen, while he said he trusts and respects Johnson highly, flatly disagreed with him on any potential savings. </p><p>"There's no savings at all," Dinneen said. "Zero. It actually would cost more money." </p><p>The county has already been making practical and philosophical changes to the Beach Patrol. It's been phasing out Ford F-150s in favor of smaller pickups and utility vehicles and placed more emphasis on the "park ranger" service Daniels mentioned. Officers made 654 arrests in 2011 compared to 543 mid-way through December 2012. </p><p>It also has an interim director, Volusia's former corrections director Marilyn Chandler Ford, who replaced the longtime director Kevin Sweat. </p><p>Outgoing District 3 Councilwoman Joie Alexander, who's been on the council 10 years, said she'd entrust the beach to a sheriff like Johnson &mdash; but noted he won't always be sheriff. With the council determining what Dinneen does with the Beach Patrol, the power is divided among seven elected officials.</p><p>"If we could be guaranteed that the sheriff would always be like a Ben Johnson, then yeah," Alexander said. "But if it is not &mdash; and you never know, because it's an elected official &mdash; then it could be not as manageable." </p><p>The issue isn't among the first Davis plans to press as County Chair, but it's expected to become one of the mini-budget workshops the county manager holds throughout the next year. </p><p>Davis said he remembers the old beach as a simpler place. </p><p>"We'd maybe have somebody speed down the beach a little bit, but for the most part we didn't have the problem of people getting run over by cops," he said. "We didn't have inappropriate actions by cops. When you have situations like that, what happens is, it brings a bad vision on local law enforcement. Everybody is heaped into one big pile. </p><p>"Believe me, I know that there are going to be certain individuals throughout the county, throughout the government, that aren't going to agree with what I want to do," he added. "But my job is to build consensus to do what I've got to do."</p>